55 Coupe project

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Trevor Gates
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Re: 55 Coupe project

#46 Post by Trevor Gates »

Nice work Steve, way to keep at it! I hope I make that much progress over a year and a half.
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Justin Rio
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Re: 55 Coupe project

#47 Post by Justin Rio »

Great to see you back on it Steve! Nice metalwork on that tailskin. I admire your honesty and willingness to share the photos of the bondo/filler work as well. I've looked through several restoration websites and most shy away from documenting this stage. It goes from bare metal to a fully painted shell sitting in the spray booth. It always makes me smile when I see that. Sorry to hear about Sammy! My last dog was named Sammy as well and he was my shop companion all through my first time around my coupe. I have not owned another dog since I lost him in'91. Its so hard when they go! Anyway nice to see some new progress shots and look forward to more. Justin

Mark Erbesfield
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Re: 55 Coupe project

#48 Post by Mark Erbesfield »

Steve, car looks great. It is always nice to spend a few minutes looking at old pics to remind yourself how far you have come. I find it quite motivational at times when you think you may never finish. It really helps to put the work you have done in focus. Keep up the great work and enjoy life with your family.
57 356A
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73 911S
66 Land Cruiser FJ45LV
71 Land Cruiser FJ40
79 450 SL

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Steve Harrison
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Re: 55 Coupe project

#49 Post by Steve Harrison »

Justin, Trevor, and Mark,..thanks for the encouraging words. It's nice to have a support group, ha ha.

It's engine work time and here are a few pix of the original block build. It's a 546/2 1500N and I'm going the all original route with the only exception being the use of a really nice set of 1600 Mahle P/C's that came with the car. All else is going to be bone stock.
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Seats just before lapping. New guides.  I just dressed up the rough casting a bit, no profile change, just smoothing some globs.
Seats just before lapping. New guides. I just dressed up the rough casting a bit, no profile change, just smoothing some globs.
Same here.  Just smoothed up some globs and bumps from casting. Also port matched to manifolds.
Same here. Just smoothed up some globs and bumps from casting. Also port matched to manifolds.
NOS valves. My only set.
NOS valves. My only set.
The heart of the matter.  Ground and polished.  First under.  This is sooo much more fun to me than body work.  You get to work clean.
The heart of the matter. Ground and polished. First under. This is sooo much more fun to me than body work. You get to work clean.
First time those case halves have kissed each other in 25 years.
First time those case halves have kissed each other in 25 years.
Poor mans torque multiplier.
Poor mans torque multiplier.
Lower half done.  Can anyone tell me my error seen here?   Not a big one, but had to backstep and correct.  No, it's not that the gen stand nut isn't tightened down yet.
Lower half done. Can anyone tell me my error seen here? Not a big one, but had to backstep and correct. No, it's not that the gen stand nut isn't tightened down yet.
The fitting of the tin.
The fitting of the tin.
Tin work is such a pain. Lots of fiddling and fooling to get it to sit and fit just right.
Tin work is such a pain. Lots of fiddling and fooling to get it to sit and fit just right.
Last edited by Steve Harrison on Wed Feb 22, 2012 12:38 am, edited 1 time in total.

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Vic Skirmants
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Re: 55 Coupe project

#50 Post by Vic Skirmants »

Pulley shield not on yet; and won't be with the pulley on.
And I hope that isn't a 1/2" drive breaker bar on your gland nut.

Mark Erbesfield
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Re: 55 Coupe project

#51 Post by Mark Erbesfield »

Steve, if you need access to plater for shiny bits let me know. I am ready to send in some of my parts soon and we could share the cost. I hand deliver them and they are usually ready in less than a week.
57 356A
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73 911S
66 Land Cruiser FJ45LV
71 Land Cruiser FJ40
79 450 SL

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Steve Harrison
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Re: 55 Coupe project

#52 Post by Steve Harrison »

Damn Vic,...bunny quick again.
Wonder how many times that pulley gaff has been done in the history of the marque?

And the breaker bar?...
Well, I'm normally a Snap-On and Craftsman man,..but sometimes ya just gotta go with China's finest.

Mark, Yes, that sounds like something I'd be interested in. I'm sending some of my stuff to a high end place out in CA,...the real critical stuff like sun visors, ignition, and door handles/locks. But the window frames and a few other things I'd like to get done locally. I'll give you a call tomorrow.
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Everyone needs one of these.
Everyone needs one of these.

Mark Erbesfield
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Re: 55 Coupe project

#53 Post by Mark Erbesfield »

Steve Harrison wrote:Damn Vic,...bunny quick again.
Wonder how many times that pulley gaff has been done in the history of the marque?

And the breaker bar?...
Well, I'm normally a Snap-On and Craftsman man,..but sometimes ya just gotta go with China's finest.

Mark, Yes, that sounds like something I'd be interested in. I'm sending some of my stuff to a high end place out in CA,...the real critical stuff like sun visors, ignition, and door handles/locks. But the window frames and a few other things I'd like to get done locally. I'll give you a call tomorrow.
The place I have used is a huge production shop. They can do barrel plating or rack plating or combination of. Did a good job and stuff that did not look good they had no problem re-doing. Paid $65.00 for each Color and they were fast.
57 356A
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73 911S
66 Land Cruiser FJ45LV
71 Land Cruiser FJ40
79 450 SL

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Steve Harrison
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Re: 55 Coupe project

#54 Post by Steve Harrison »

Another thing in the "should have done X before Y" category is putting the carbs on before the shroud. If you do it the other way, like I did, you have the challenge of getting the 12 mm across the flats nuts tight with the shroud in the way. Here is how I modified a 12 mm craftsman wrench to do it. No big deal really, and I can't say I'd do it differently anyway. Just another of the typical "adjustments" you have to make in your day to make something happen. It's no wonder some days it takes longer than you'd think to get something done. But I am enjoying every minute. :D
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Freehanded with a flap wheel on a 4" grinder.
Freehanded with a flap wheel on a 4" grinder.
12mm nut on 32pbj.jpg
Yes, I know,...cheese head screw on the fan shroud,...  It's only temporary, trust me.
Yes, I know,...cheese head screw on the fan shroud,... It's only temporary, trust me.
These choke covers are hard to find (Thanks Ernie!) and hardly used when installed anyway.  Just adds a nice authentic touch I think. I cut a lot of my own gaskets, but this one would be fairly tedious to do. I decided to use a little "blue goo" RTV silicone and clean up the squeeze out.  Used a little grease on the brass disc also. Smooth as silk.
These choke covers are hard to find (Thanks Ernie!) and hardly used when installed anyway. Just adds a nice authentic touch I think. I cut a lot of my own gaskets, but this one would be fairly tedious to do. I decided to use a little "blue goo" RTV silicone and clean up the squeeze out. Used a little grease on the brass disc also. Smooth as silk.
Almost there.  Still waiting on a few bits.
Almost there. Still waiting on a few bits.

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Vic Skirmants
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Re: 55 Coupe project

#55 Post by Vic Skirmants »

Don't use RTV anywhere NEAR gasoline. It swells up and disintegrates. Might be OK here, but NEVER on a top gasket, or other locations in the carb. Hylomar works around gasoline.

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Steve Harrison
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Re: 55 Coupe project

#56 Post by Steve Harrison »

Yea Vic, Hylomar is great stuff..stays soft and makes things repositionable,.. but isn't much good as a "gasket maker" so to speak. I used it a lot when I was racing the Sprite. I figured there wasn't much chance of me actually using these choke deals so I gave RTV a shot. As far as top gaskets...I didn't use any gasket goop at all on them, just trued up to dead flat with sandpaper on glass and used the paper gasket. It's less of a mess if I have to up the chokes when sorting the new set up. I think it'll be ok but going to keep a close watch on start up.

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Steve Harrison
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Re: 55 Coupe project

#57 Post by Steve Harrison »

I needed a muffler.
The engine build is at that point, and I've been looking at the options for a few years now. The pea shooter look is what I really like, but they're just not around. Used ones are usually shot and also pricey. I started a thread a while back wanting to see what the insides of the different mufflers looked like and I got some great shots of what's going on in there. Taking points from them, (and some tips I got from Ken Daugherty), I made a simple design. Instead of shelling out $600 to $1200 for a muffler, I had the local muffler shop make a few bends for me and for $92 in materials and two weekends of fitting and welding I turned this:

crap-shooter materials.jpg

Into this:
crap-shooter.jpg
I have dubbed it the "crap shooter"

Mark Erbesfield
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Re: 55 Coupe project

#58 Post by Mark Erbesfield »

Steve, I love the muffler and especially that you took the project on yourself. I really like to see folks DIY.
57 356A
68 912
73 911S
66 Land Cruiser FJ45LV
71 Land Cruiser FJ40
79 450 SL

Justin Rio
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Re: 55 Coupe project

#59 Post by Justin Rio »

Nice work! Are you gonna chrome tip these?? J.

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Steve Harrison
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Re: 55 Coupe project

#60 Post by Steve Harrison »

Ha Ha,..I actually thought about that Justin. Stove paint is ok, but chrome tips would be really cool. We'll see. But right now, I am sorting through the engine start up. Happy to say, that after all this time apart, the old gal finally got started yesterday. After checking everything over and over again, I actually went ahead and filled it with oil and motored it over to check oil pressure. It made 45 lbs on the starter alone,...and that's the small oil pump in there mind you. After that, I gassed her up and checked for fuel leaks. Yes, there were a few at the fuel filter, but got them stopped, as well as a pretty good oil leak at one of the new lines. Got all that fixed and then it was the big moment....Wow,..it started right up, with the usual odd high sort of bumpy idle that I expect. Ran it for the requisite 25 minutes to get the lifters aquainted with the cam, all the while adjusting the carbs. Well,...after this initial start up I decided that the left carb just wasn't right. I couldn't get any response from the idle enrichment screw. All the way in,..no change,..all the way out,..no change. So I had to chase down the problem. Took it all apart and turns out the thing was clogged internally.

I have attached some process pictures. I took Carbeuretor Jim's advice on further solvents and air pressure, but after another few rounds of that I decided to go into "uncharted territory" and physically clean the passage. The clogged passage was before the idle jet, but after the main jet. What I couldn't do was blow air back from the idle air bleed to the main jet hole, (with all the other escape passages covered that is.)

So, I knew the idle passage was blocked somewhere between the main and the idle jet. This is not easy to test for because if you blow the idle circuit passages out like normal you will hear air coming out and also see solvent coming out of the normal places. What I mean is that if you blow solvent into where the idle jet seats you will see solvent come out down in the carb throat so it's easy to think everything's ok. You just won't see it coming out of the main jet hole, which is hard to catch unless you can cover ALL of the other escape routes. This requires some contortions and creative thinking.

What I did was first take the throttle body off. Then I just could reach the hole in the throat of the carb that is beside the mounting boss protrusion for the emulsion tube and cover it with my pinkie finger. Then you use a tapered rod to block the hole where the idle feed goes down to (through) the throttle body piece to feed the idle. You have to also block off the emulsion tube, this is the hardest part because of all the holes in it and the air correction jet. I opted to remove it. But then, you're still faced with that tang area where the tube orients. Not easy to block off so I used some flexible water seal stuff I got from years ago working in the electrical field. It's pliable and thick and is about the consistency of silly putty. You can see it in the last picture still blocking the emulsion tube boss. Then with the idle jet still in place, you can put your mouth over the idle air bleed and blow pressure in there. You should hear air coming out of the main jet hole if all is well. You can make certain the hiss you are hearing is coming from there by putting a finger over it temporarily thereby forcing the air back through the passage to the float bowl feed. This changes the pitch of the hiss. If that's the case, you've got your idle passage clear. Other than this admittedly convoluted method, I can see no other real way to test for this passage being clear other than put the carb on the car, and see if you can make the carb idle. I will probably never do another set of these carbs, but I thought maybe if someone is faced with this problem again in the future maybe this will help you figure it out.

The attached pictures start by showing the passage in question. Then the drilling out of the plug, and the cleaning of the passage. I cleaned it using a twist drill by hand. There was a huge amount of white/grey corrosion crud packed in there. Then I show the soft copper tapered plug I made and tapped home. The last picture shows the finished plug cut and filed flush with the carb body.

The newly rebuilt 55 engine now idles perfectly. It also has no leaks, and makes 55 lbs oil pressure. All in all, a good day. I hope to be able to post a video of it running soon. As Justin always says,...Thanks for reading this. : )
This is the passage in question
This is the passage in question
This is the main jet passage it's supposed to connect with.
This is the main jet passage it's supposed to connect with.
Drilling the center of the brass plug,..leaving some brass all around.
Drilling the center of the brass plug,..leaving some brass all around.
Clean out decades of crud.
Clean out decades of crud.
Soft copper plug I fashioned from a piece of 12 ga wire
Soft copper plug I fashioned from a piece of 12 ga wire
Seating it firmly with few sound taps.
Seating it firmly with few sound taps.
Cut down and filed flush.
Cut down and filed flush.
Finished job and ready to be put back in service.
Finished job and ready to be put back in service.

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